Sea Lamprey

Sea Lamprey Control update 2012: Since 2006-2007, the US Fish and Wildlife Service and the Great Lakes Indian Fish and Wildlife Commission has subcontracted KBIC in maintaining and collecting catch data from an adult sea lamprey trap on the Silver River Watershed. Silver River and Keweenaw Bay are the largest watersheds on KBIC tribal lands encompassing over 33,000 acres, and work in assisting with understanding and control of the exotic sea lamprey in these areas has been considered a high priority for KBNRD in recent years.

By assessing adult sea lamprey populations in the Silver River, estimates of potential larval lamprey production for the system can be generated, which in turn gives sea lamprey control experts vital information on how to most effectively eradicate larval lamprey before they can return to Lake Superior to attack more fish. Sea lamprey are still estimated to kill more lake trout than the combined sport and commercial fisheries, and controlling their numbers is a critical component of Lake Superior lake trout management.